Decades of research has documented the stress and burden that families of psychiatric patients experience as a result of their relative's illness. Studies have also shown that when families receive psychoeducational intervention, patients' relapse rates are significantly reduced. Current treatment guidelines recommend that all families of psychiatric patients be offered an intervention to meet their needs related to their relative's illness. In spite of this, there has not been wide spread adoption of systematic family intervention program: less that half of these families actually receive services. The proposed study will investigate the factors that influence whether families of psychiatric patients receive interventions when their relative is either hospitalized for an acute episode of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, or is receiving long-term management in a community based treatment setting. The long term objectives of the study are to provide direction for implementing a family intervention that is effective in reducing family psychological distress, is feasible in terms of existing resources, and is relevant to a diverse group of families (ethnicity, socio-economic status, geographic location and relationship to the patient). The study will elicit the perspectives of the key "stakeholders" in psychiatric care for families: health care providers, families, patients and mental health advocates. In an effort to identify barriers to family interventions in a variety of settings, 12 focus groups will be conducted. The groups will be used to generate discussion among participants regarding the barriers to offering and/or receiving family centered care, opinions about currently available treatment programs and suggestions for future development of family programs. All group sessions will be audio tape recorded, transcribed and analyzed using a qualitative approach of thematic analysis. Findings will be used to recommend content and process of family intervention and suggest methods of implementation.